Sounding toys



June 12, 1956 E. ELSTEIN 2,749,659

SOUNDING TOYS Filed Oct. 17, 1951 IN V EN TOR.

[c/wa rd 15/5 fem ATTORNEY United States Patent SOUNDING TOYS Edward Elstein, Forest Hills, N. Y.

Application October 17, 1951, Serial No. 251,799

3 Claims. (Cl. 46-191) This invention relates to toys, and particularly to manually manipulatable toys that require a degree of skill in their manipulation.

The basic principle of the toys disclosed herein involves a supporting frame with a handle for swinging the frame, and an oscillatable member pivotally mounted on the frame to cooperate with or to operate on portions of the frame or on elements of various kinds otherwise supported on the frame.

Two toys constructed in accordance with the principles of this invention are illustrated in the two figures of the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a toy having several spherical tinkle bells which may be capable of producing sounds of difierent frequencies; and

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a toy having a series of plates for producing sounds of the notes in an ascending octave when struck.

Figure 1 shows a modification with a wire frame 11, a base 12, a handle 13, and spherical tinkle bells 14, and 16 respectively supported on the upper ends of flexible resilient posts 17, such as helically wound springs, whose lower ends are anchored in the base 12. A pendulous striker 18 is suspended from an extensible spring or rubber band 19 that is in turn supported from a hook 20 disposed to ride along the top cross-bar 21 of the frame 11, and normally swing clear of the spherical tinkle bells. Suitable oscillation or revolution of the frame, by the handle, swings the striker 18 to stretch rubber band 19 to enable the striker to hit the spheres.

By manipulation of the handle to shift the striker position on the frame while the striker is rotating, it may be caused to strike one or the other of the spherical tinkle bells to keep them in continuous motion.

Figure 2 shows a modification 25, with a frame 26, a base 27, a handle 28, a series of metal plates 29 of suit- 2,749,659 Patented June 12, 1956 ice able dimensions to sound the respective note frequencies of an octave of sound frequencies, with each plate suitably supported on a post 30, preferably rigid to transmit the sound of its plate to the frame 26, which may be formed to constitute a sounding board. A striker 31, suspended from a gum band 32 attached to a movable hook 33 on the frame cross-bar 34, may be rotated and shifted to selectively strike a selected plate for the desired note sequence. The rubber band normally holds the striker above the plates so the rotating striker may clear the plates when desired.

In Fig. 1, it is contemplated that the spring-supported tinkle bells 14 to 16, mounted on the springs 17, may be removed for individual use by a child, as a separate toy.

It is also contemplated that the various forms may be packaged unassembled, so they may be assembled by the purchaser.

The invention claimed is:

1. A toy comprising a frame having a top wire portion and a bottom portion parallel thereto, a handle to manipulate the frame, a plurality of sound-producing devices within the enclosed space of the frame and secured to and rising from the bottom portion in spaced relation to each other, and a pendulous striker resiliently suspended from the top of the frame and slidable loosely along the frame top to normally clear the sound-producing devices, said resiliently suspended striker being responsive to centrifugal force during its rotation by appropriate manipulation of the handle, for extending the length of the radius arm of the pendulous element to enable said element to selectively strike one of the soundproducing devices.

2. A toy as in claim 1, in which the sound-producing devices consist of plates capable of emitting the notes in one octave of the musical scale.

3. A toy as in claim 1 in which the sound-producing devices consist of spherical tinkle bells mounted on flexible anchored posts.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 410,101 How Aug. 27, 1889 834,077 Reiter Oct. 22, 1906 842,077 Burnett Ian. 22, 1907 1,098,462 Schuler June 2, 1914 1,557,636 Warner Oct. 20, 1925 2,189,853 Zadek Feb. 13, 1940 2,246,041 Halberstadter June 17, 1941 2,264,787 Barnett Dec. 2, 1941 

